Is Eating After 8 p.m. Putting on the Pounds?

One of the great things about summer time is dinner and drinks that start in the evening and go into the night. But this pleasure may come with some drawbacks.

Are you wondering if eating late will cause you to gain weight?

The technical answer is no. Technically our metabolism is always working so it shouldn’t matter what time you eat. You are always burning calories just to breathe and pump your heart, your basal metabolic rate.

Of course the amount of calories burned will increase, the more activity that you do during each day. So even during the evening hours you are burning calories while you are eating or moving around from place to place. I’m sure that gives you a sigh of relief.

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You lose weight when the number of calories you consume is less than the number of calories your body burns during the day. Most of the calories are burned through your basal metabolic rate. Additionally calories are burned by your daily activities like walking, or any type of movement or exercise you do.

Your basal metabolic rate, or your BMR, is measured by looking at the number of calories your body uses to perform basic functions like heartbeat or breathing rate. It is calculated by using your height, weight, gender and age.

If you want to know your specific BMR, here is the Mifflin – St. Jeor equation that you can use to figure it out.

Once you know your BMR and you add your daily activity, you have the number of calories you can burn in a day. Generally speaking for women from the ages of 30-50 who are moderately active, the suggested calorie count is about 2,000 per day.

But wait a quick minute -- before you shut down your computer and rush out for dinner and drinks with your friends for the rest of the week. It is important to remember that the amount of food, or more specifically the amount of calories that you consume, will make a difference in your weight loss or weight management goals.

We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.